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Friday, 15 July 2011

Looming crisis at refugee camp expected at end of the tunnel



By Shadrack Mbaka;

A wedge had earlier been driven between the government of Kenya and International aid organizations on matters of addressing the worsening humanitarian crisis in northern Kenya, where thousands of Somali refugees have pitched camp to escape war and drought in their lawless country.

Dadaab refugee camp is currently the world’s biggest refugee complex, Humanitarian workers and officials including the UNHCR boss, António Guterres have described the situation as ‘hell on earth’ and warned that hundreds of malnourished children could die in the coming weeks.

This comes at a time when the Government of Kenya was reluctant to open a new camp for the refugees coming into the country in droves. As much as I agree with the Kenyan government citations that allowing more refugees was indeed a security risk, it would really” look bad” if we turn the refugees away.

According to the latest statistics about 21 children have died of malnutrition and other diseases at the camp since June this year. On Sunday, a Somali refugee who had just given birth died together with her baby as aidworkers battled to save their lives.

Humanitarian workers and nearby hospitals have been  teeming with children and adults as more refugees who had walked for several weeks through the bandit-infested Somali hinterland queued for admission into the camps while others were dying on the way.

There has been tales of children and relatives collapsing and dying on the way as they braved scorching sun and hunger to reach Dadaab, some 150km from Garrisa town, which has hosted Somali refugees for the past 20 years.

It is only hopeful that the government’s directive through the Prime Minister that the Kenya – Somalia boarder at Liboi be opened as well as overseeing the building of a new camp to settle the refugees would come to pass.

This is an international crisis and the situation is worsening each day at sunrise and at sunset. It is also common knowledge that the influx of more refugees is steadily rising and is not expected to decrease any time soon. Let the world join forces to help men, women and children from the claws of drought in Somalia.





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